eAccessibility
an introduction

Dr David Kreps

fourquarters IS Ltd

Information Systems, Organisations and Society
Research Centre, University of Salford

Judging Panel Big Chip Awards

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agenda

• foreword - david kreps

• Introduction

• Techniques

• Drivers

• The current state of play

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dr david kreps

• ba(hons) theatre & arts mgt, 91-94

• director tamworth arts centre 94-97
  [1st website 95], portsmouth arts centre c 97-98

• ma cultural studies p/t 95-98 -
  cybersociety

• PhD sociology of technology, 98-03
  - ‘cyborgs’

• Chair, Kaos Theatre 97 - 08, Board of Horse & Bamboo since 08

• fourquarters - 2000 to present

• lectureship in information systems jan 04

• conference/journal papers & eu projects on web accessibility & virtuality

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digital divide

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web accessibility
it’s in the code

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how the web discriminates

• impairments

  • sensory: ability to see or hear the web page

  • physical: ability to interact with the website

  • cognitive: ability to comprehend the content

• assistive technologies

  • text to speech

  • adjust screen or webpage e.g. screen magnification

  • alternative devices, other than a standard mouse

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text-to-speech

• speech synthesis technologies

  • particularly useful for the blind

  • used by some people who are only partially sighted

  • used by some people with dyslexia

• screen readers and voice browsers

  • JAWS, HAL, IBM Homepage Reader, etc

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user adjustment

• screen magnification for the partially sighted

  • HAL, JAWS etc, ZoomText, Windows magnifier

• text enlargement
  - for the
  partially sighted

  • browser controls

    • • • colour adjustment
          - for the colour blind
          and many dyslexics

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alternative devices

• different kinds of mouse very useful for those with hand-tremor conditions, Repetitive Strain Injury, age-related mobility problems - Parkinsons etc, recovery from injury

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techniques

• graphical paradigm

• semantic information

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semantic web

• content - semantic information - and presentation separate

• web page = 2 files

  • HTML with text

  • CSS with style

• assistive technologies don’t work properly on web pages based on graphical paradigm

• text-to-speech must have text to read

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Drivers for change

• 1998 Amendment to US Rehabilitation Act Section 508 - Federal agencies only

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European Union

• 45 million people with disabilities in the EU

• Number of older Europeans steadily increasing

• Lisbon Agenda: to make the EU "the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion, and respect for the environment by 2010" adopted 2000

• eInclusion and eAccessibility

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UK Legislation

• DDA 2005 - in force since Dec 2006

  • The onus is particularly on public authorities to ensure their services, available on the world wide web, are accessible to everyone

  • Disability Action Plan

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• • Any public money spent on web design should be spent on accessible web design - by law

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Current State of Play

• UK Disability Rights Commission 2004:
  “Formal Investigation report – The Web: Access and Inclusion for Disabled People” Study of 1000 UK websites:
  “Most websites (81%) fail to satisfy the most basic Web Accessibility Initiative category” – Level A

• UK Presidency of the EU 2005:
  “eAccessibility of public sector services in the European Union”
  Study of 436 government service websites across Europe “3%
  of the websites assessed achieve Level A conformance”

• IS Organisations & Society Research Centre 2007:
  “ Combating eDiscrimination in the North West” Study of
  112 websites advertising job opportunities - 15 passed
  Level A, none Level AA.
  

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Contact

• Information Systems, Organisations and Society Research Centre
  University of Salford
  M5 4WT
  UK